3-D printing, or additive manufacturing, is a process of making three dimensional solid objects based on blueprints provided by digital files. The synthesis of the desired 3-D solid object is achieved by strategically generating successive layers of an additive material in a pattern on a platform of a 3-D printer until the entire object is created. The synthesis of the 3-D object is driven by the digital files that provide the specifications that describe how to create the pattern of layers and the materials used to generate the object. The digital files specifying the design are provided by the user, and examples of the digital files read by the 3-D printer include G-code files, computer-aided design (“CAD”) files, STereoLithography (“STL”) CAD files, and other file types generally used in additive manufacturing processes. In some instances, the digital files refer to a 3-D model of a new object, but alternatively, the digital files can refer to a copy of an object derived from the usage of a 3-D scanner.
The generation of the successive layers of the additive material can be performed, for example, according to any one of: (1) Vat Photopolymerisation, (2) Material Jetting, (3) Binder Jetting, (4) Direction Energy Deposition, (5) Powder Bed Fusion, (6) Sheet Lamination, or (7) Material Extrusion. Specific processes of Material Extrusion used to generate the successive layers can involve making sequential deposits using fused deposition modeling (“FDM”), fused filament fabrication (“FFF”), or Direct Ink Writing (“DIW”).
The materials used as the “ink” of the 3-D printer to generate the 3-D object can include, for example, any of: powder material, polymer material, thermoplastics, eutectic metals, edible materials, rubbers, modeling clay, plasticine, metal clay, ceramic materials, metal alloys, papers, composite materials composed of ceramics and metallic materials (“cermet”), metal matrix composites, ceramic matrix composites, photopolymers, plaster, stainless steel, aluminum, plastic film, and metal foil.
For some additive processes, the ink is referred to as a filament and the filament is held in cartridges that are referred to as spools. The filament is typically provided in long strands having a small diameter, and they are wrapped in the form of reels around the spools, which secure the filament in place before the filament is fed into a filament guide or a filament tube. After the filament is fed into the filament guide, the filament is pulled by an extruder through a feed tube and into an extruder head. Then a stepper motor of the extruder grips the filament and begins to pull the filament such that the filament unwinds from the spool. After the stepper motor of the extruder begins to pull the filament through the feed tube and into the extruder head, a heater in the extruder head heats the filament to a temperature set by the 3-D printer, and the heated filament is released through a nozzle end of the extruder head. The heated filament is strategically released in successive layers in a pattern on the platform of the 3-D printer, which creates a solid object.
With 3-D printing, having good temperature control of the filament being melted and extruded for building the solid object is crucial. Improper heating of the filament, such as overheating and underheating, can cause the filament to clog in the extruder, particularly the feed tube and the nozzle.